Sunday, May 17, 2015

First Annual Quintanilla Time-Capsule Opening

On 5-16-2015 Quintanilla began their annual Time-Capsule opening with the reunion of the Class of 2005. It was a good day for many reasons. The students made the party significant. Many staff from Quintanilla in 2005 were present to celebrate with their former students. It was a great day! Dozens of letters were returned to the students who wrote them a decade ago.

The letters that remain may be located in the Quintanilla Library. Call Quintanilla and ask for the library to verify if your letter is there: 972-502-3200.

Sadly only 2/3 of the 536 students in the 8th grade in 2005 wrote letters so there is not one for everyone. 2005 was the first year. The time-capsule system was just being created. The Quintanilla Vault was installed the summer of 2005. Since then over 95% of 8th graders have written letters each year as they left Quintanilla for high school. Graduation rates have doubled and many other positive changes have happened.

The value of focusing middle school students onto their own futures, by simply having a system where they can do the planning for that future in letters to themselves, is infinite! The more we do it, and the more we get parents involved writing their own letters to their child each year as to their evolving dreams for their child, the more progress we will see in our schools. Our children must take control of their own lives with the active support of their parents. We must help that happen. They must be able to look back and see the changes, see the good, and see how they can change things.

Then they need to share what they have learned with decade younger students back at their old middle school. See www.studentmotivation.org. A community of change is evolving in our neighborhood!

Ultimately each child must realize that they are responsible themselves for what happens. Nobody can do it for them.

About Bill

Retired middle school teacher & social worker with student motivation hobby. Resume at http://www.openadoption.org/bbetzen/resume.htm. The only other Bill Betzen online is his grandfather (1890-1969.) bbetzen@aol.com